Depth Charts

The Vancouver Canucks still haven't figured out which forward will play with Henrik and Daniel Sedin this year.

Free-agent forward Sam Gagner was given an opportunity to play on that line for two games during the preseason, but it just hasn't worked out. That doesn't mean that it can't eventually work out though. One player to keep an eye on is rookie Brock Boeser, who is one of the top prospects in the organization. If they give Boeser a shot, he could have some solid fantasy value this season.

The Vancouver Canucks have announced that Bo Horvat will be out for the next week due to an upper-body injury.

The injury occurred on a hit from Drew Doughty during the first of two games against the Kings in China. Good news for Canucks fans is that he is expected to be ready in time for the regular season. Horvat is an excellent candidate to take another step forward this season.

Markus Granlund has played almost the entire 2016-17 campaign with broken ligaments in his wrist.

The Canucks said that Granlund "had an ongoing wrist injury" when they announced that he would be shutdown to undergo surgery, but the extent of the issue wasn't initially revealed. As it turns out, he broke the ligaments on October 25th, but still managed to score 19 goals and 32 points in 69 games this season. He's expected to need three-to-five months to recover, so he should be okay for the 2017-18 campaign.

Canucks head coach Travis Green told Daniel Sedin that "we were not good enough last year" in their first meeting.

Not exactly a groundbreaking statement from Green, but it does suggest that he intends to be straightforward with his players. Green, who enjoyed a 970-game NHL career as a forward, is gearing up for his first season as a bench boss. Expectations are low for Vancouver this season and for Daniel Sedin, who was limited to 44 points in 2016-17 and will turn 37-years-old on Sept. 26.

Sven Baertschi scored his third goal of the pre-season in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Los Angeles Kings.

Baertschi is coming off a career high 18 goals last season. He has been impressive during the pre-season so far. His continued strong play will make him a strong candidate to start the season in a top-six role and eclipse the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career. He could be a sleeper candidate this season.

Reid Boucher has avoided his arbitration hearing by signing a one-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

Boucher's new deal is worth $687,500, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. He generated five goals and two assists in 27 games with the Canucks after he was claimed off waivers from New Jersey. He also played briefly for the Nashville Predators in 2016-17. Boucher has 17 goals and 20 assists over 112 career NHL contests.

The Vancouver Canucks have signed forward Alexander Burmistrov to a one-year deal.

The former Arizona Coyote did not get a qualifying offer and was on the UFA market where he will get 900,000 from the Canucks. He has not been a stud to say the least after being drafted eighth overall in 2010. Look for a 35-40 point season in Vancouver for the Russian.

It's a tough break for the former first-round pick, as he finally was able to push for a roster spot last season. In 2016-17, he scored no goals and five assists in 57 contests with the Canucks. Even when he does come back to the lineup, Gaunce still won't have any value in standard fantasy leagues.

Anton Rodin can reportedly go back to Sweden if he doesn't land a spot with the Canucks out of training camp.

Rodin only dressed in three games with Vancouver last year and he contributed one assist. He dealt with issues related to his surgically-repaired knee and never was able to establish himself at the NHL level.

Thomas Vanek was one of Vancouver's better forwards during their 4-3 shootout loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.

This was the second contest of the NHL China Games. Today's game was played in Beijing. Vanek played on a line with Sven Baertschi and Markus Granlund. The trio helped the Canucks get on the board (Baertschi scored) and they added five shots on goal. Vanek is a low-risk signing for the Canucks, and it looks like he might be able to give them some of the offense they've been lacking.

Loui Eriksson hopes to bounce back this season after he posted just 24 points in 65 games last year.

However, it may be difficult for him to secure a spot on a scoring line. Vancouver signed Sam Gagner and Thomas Vanek in the summer and Brock Boeser appears to be poised to claim a top-six forward spot. That could place Eriksson on the third line going into 2017-18.

Sam Gagner has not been a factor playing on a line with Henrik and Daniel Sedin.

It was thought that the trio would make up the top line when Gagner signed in July with Vancouver but the chemistry does not seem to be there. The Canucks could still try someone else with the Swedish twins and with opening night less than two weeks away, a decision should be made soon. Gagner had 18 goals and 50 points with Columbus last season but a return to those numbers with an offensively-challenged Vancouver team, may be in doubt.

Jayson Megna signed a one-year contract extension with Vancouver on Sunday.

It's a one-way deal worth $675K as well. "Jayson is a strong skater who has added depth to our forward group," said General Manager Jim Benning. "We value his character and professionalism and are pleased to re-sign him for another year." The 27-year-old has 10 goals and 20 points in 107 career games.

Derek Dorsett (neck) is skating and will be ready for training camp, according to agent Jason Davidson.

Dorsett underwent cervical fusion surgery back in early December due to disc degeneration in his neck. Davidson said that Dorsett hasn't experienced any issues. He contributed four points and 33 penalty minutes in 14 appearances with the Canucks last season.

Nikolay Goldobin isn't interested in returning to Russia to play in the KHL.

Goldobin says he's ready to make the jump to the NHL, but he's committed to staying in North America even if he has to go down to the minors again. "I’m not thinking about leaving," Goldobin said. "Of course I would be disappointed if I don’t make the team, but I don’t want to go back to Russia. I want to play the best league in the world. This is my dream. I’m not going to just give up on it like that." His offensive talent is undeniable, but he may go to the AHL to continue working on his overall game.

Hutton recorded four shots on net and as a minus-1 in nearly 22 minutes of ice time. The 23-year-old has five goals and 19 points in 59 points. Sven Baertschi picked up his 17th goal a losing cause for the Canucks as well.

"A big thing I've been working on, more rest and treatment this off-season, not trying to push myself too much so I can last a little bit longer in the season," said Del Zotto. He signed a two-year contract with Vancouver in the summer and should fit into the team's top-four defense group. Del Zotto will probably get a look on the Canucks' power play as well.

Chris Tanev is attracting plenty of interest from other NHL GMs, but Jim Benning is reluctant to move the talented defender.

"I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't listen and see if it (trade) is worth it, but it's hard to find good defensemen," said Benning. "Especially defensemen who are mobile and move the puck. I'm not shopping Tanev or bringing his name up in conversations with other GMs. They bring up his name. Unless it would make sense for our future, I'm not trading Chris. He means so much to our team. And we're not looking to do anything with Alex (Edler)." Tanev and Edler had injury issues in 2016-17, but it appears the teams still has confidence in their abilities to bounce back.

The Canucks have been busy at free agency as they try and rebuild the team. They get an inexpensive defenseman in Wiercioch who showed some offensive talent in Ottawa. Wiercioch had four goals and 12 points in 57 games with Colorado last season so don't expect much in 2017-18 from the blueliner as far as fantasy pools are concerned.

According to the Miami Herald, Gudbranson was nearly dealt back to the Florida Panthers on Sunday but Jason Demers nixed the trade.

Demers, who has a modified no-trade clause, was eventually dealt to Arizona later in the day. Gudbranson played for the Panthers for five seasons before moving to Vancouver last season. He has little to no fantasy value.

It will be difficult for Olli Juolevi to claim a roster spot at training camp.

The Canucks signed Michael Del Zotto and Patrick Wiercioch over the summer to compete for positions on the back end. Juolevi also struggled at the Young Stars tournament over the weekend. A report surfaced recently that he may play for TPS in Finland if he doesn't get a spot with Vancouver.

Vancouver GM Jim Benning believes that Jacob Markstrom will be the starting goaltender of the team eventually.

"We've been grooming him the last couple of years to be at some point be our No. 1 goalie and I've been saying that for the last couple of years," said Benning. "I don't know when that happens, but at some point that's what our goal is." The Canucks want to bring back veteran netminder Ryan Miller, who can become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

The Vancouver Canucks have signed goaltender Anders Nilsson to a two-year contract worth $5 million.

This is a sneaky pick by the Canucks as Nilsson is more than capable in net and could be the starter over Jacob Markstrom. Nilsson was 10-10-4 with Buffalo last season and had a 2.67 GAA and .923 save percentage. Don't forget about him late in drafts as he is a nice sleeper pick.